Whatstandwell railway station is a

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

owned by

Network Rail Network Rail Limited is the owner (via its subsidiary Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, which was known as Railtrack plc before 2002) and infrastructure manager of most of the railway network in Great Britain. Network Rail is an "arm's leng ...

and managed by

East Midlands Railway Abellio East Midlands Limited, trading as East Midlands Railway (EMR), is a train operating company in England, owned by Abellio, and is the current operator of the East Midlands franchise. History In March 2017, the Department for Transport a ...

. It serves the villages of

Whatstandwell Whatstandwell is a village on the River Derwent in the Amber Valley district of Derbyshire, England. It is about five miles south of Matlock and about four miles north of Belper. Whatstandwell railway station is located on the Derby-Matlock ...

and Crich Carr in

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The station is located on the Derwent Valley Line from

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...

to Matlock. There is a ticketing machine on the single platform; a full range of tickets for travel for any destination in the country can be also purchased from the

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...

on the train at no extra cost.

History

It was opened by the Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midlands Junction Railway as 'Whatstandwell Bridge' on 4 June 1849, though it was not listed in the timetable until 1853. It was north of the Whatstandwell Tunnel, behind the Derwent Hotel. On 4 October 1853 a luggage train was on its way from Rowsley to Ambergate and at Whatstandwell was put into a siding to collect some empty wagons. It derailed and a breakdown crew was sent for from Derby. With this assistance, the train was re-railed and set off for Ambergate. The break down train which had come from Derby was standing on the wrong line for returning to Derby. Instead of continuing for 1/2 a mile to cross onto the correct line they determined to return to Derby on the wrong line, calculating that they would get back before anything started out from Derby. They ignored the rules of the company which required a fireman walking 800 yards in advance of the train and proceeding at a walking pace. Instead they travelled at full speed. They collided with another engine and Michael Barker, a fireman, was killed. Samuel Kent, George Cawood and John Smeeton were indicted for his manslaughter. They were found guilty at the Midland Assizes on 18 March 1854. Kent was sentenced by Lord Chief Justice Jervis to 18 months’ imprisonment and hard labour and the others got 12 months each. The station was moved to its present location in 1894 when the name became 'Whatstandwell'. The platform at the original station still exists. The area was used as a goods yard after the present station was built. The contractor for the new station was W.C. Hardy of Derby. The new station opened on 11 November 1894. A little way north was

High Peak Junction High Peak Junction, near Cromford, Derbyshire, England, is the name now used to describe the site where the former Cromford and High Peak Railway (C&HPR), whose workshops were located here, meets the Cromford Canal. It lies within Derwent Valley ...

at the base of the former rope-worked incline of the

Cromford and High Peak Railway The Cromford and High Peak Railway (C&HPR) was a standard-gauge line between the Cromford Canal wharf at High Peak Junction and the Peak Forest Canal at Whaley Bridge. The railway, which was completed in 1831, was built to carry minerals and goo ...

Stationmasters

*Thomas Stevenson ca. 1853 ca. 1854 *Robert Turner ca. 1857 - 1860 *Luke Fox 1860 - 1864 (afterwards station master at Cudworth) *S. Greenhough from 1864 *William Webster ca. 1871 - 1873 (afterwards station master at Chapel-en-le-Frith) *Brierly Ayton 1873 (formerly station master at Beauchief, appointed to Whatstandwell but died 27 February 1873) *William T. Stowell 1873 - 1876 (formerly station master at Wixford, afterwards station master at Crosby Garrett) *Edwin Hoe 1876 - 1879 (afterwards station master at Finedon) *George Simmons 1879 - 1883 *Fred Watkin 1883 - 1887 (formerly station master at Stirchley Street, afterwards station master at Shefford) *Charles Whitmore 1887 - 1896 (formerly station master at Ratby) *H.T. Swain 1896 - 1900 (formerly station master at Penns) *Harry Smith Dawes 1900 - 1911 (formerly station master at New Mills, afterwards station master at Bakewell) *William Henry Hewitt 1911 - ca. 1937 *E. Barker ca. 1946 *A. Cyril Phillips until 1957

Today

The station is served by

, who operate the service from Nottingham to Matlock (via Derby). For journeys beginning at Whatstandwell, tickets may be bought from the machine on the platform or on the train for any destination in the country; beyond Derby, tickets must be bought at the ticket office. The journey time to Derby is approximately 24 minutes. Services are approximately hourly, but two-hourly on Sundays. Trains on the Derwent Valley line were replaced by a bus service for several weeks in late summer of 2018; this was due to essential works being carried out on the approach to Derby station. The footbridge at the station leads to the

Cromford Canal The Cromford Canal ran from Cromford to the Erewash Canal in Derbyshire, England with a branch to Pinxton. Built by William Jessop with the assistance of Benjamin Outram, its alignment included four tunnels and 14 locks. From Cromford it ran ...

towpath A towpath is a road or trail on the bank of a river, canal, or other inland waterway. The purpose of a towpath is to allow a land vehicle, beasts of burden, or a team of human pullers to tow a boat, often a barge. This mode of transport ...

and to a bridge over the canal to Main Road and the village. WhatstandwellPlatformPlanter

A team of volunteers from the village helps to maintain the station and car park.

Services

All services at Whatstandwell are operated by

. On weekdays and Saturdays, the station is served by one train per hour in each direction between and . The final late evening service from Matlock is extended to . On Sundays, there is a two-hourly service between Matlock and Nottingham in the morning, with services increasing to hourly from mid-afternoon onwards.

References

External links

*
"Picture the Past" Whatstandwell station 1900-10

Friends of the Derwent Valley Line

{{coord, 53.0832, N, 1.5041, W, type:railwaystation_region:GB, display=title Railway stations in Derbyshire DfT Category F2 stations Former Midland Railway stations Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1849 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1894 Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1894 Railway stations served by East Midlands Railway 1849 establishments in England